Princess Diana’s 1995 Panorama interview with the BBC was a monumental moment in royal history. Throughout the chat, Diana got extremely candid about her marriage breakdown, her mental health battle and eating disorder.
However, since the interview went to air, people in the princess’ corner slammed the BBC for “tricking Diana” into the sit-down, prompting an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the chat.
The findings of the inquiry have now been released and Prince Harry has made his thoughts clear in an official statement.
WATCH: Princess Diana discusses Camilla and Charles’ affair with the BBC
The Duke of Sussex wrote: “Our mother was an incredible woman who dedicated her life to service. She was resilient, brave, and unquestionably honest. The ripple effect of a culture of exploitation and unethical practices ultimately took her life.”
Harry continued: “To those who have taken some form of accountability, thank you for owning it. That is the first step towards justice and truth. Yet what deeply concerns me is that practices like these— and even worse—are still widespread today. Then, and now, it’s bigger than one outlet, one network, or one publication.”
“Our mother lost her life because of this, and nothing has changed. By protecting her legacy, we protect everyone, and uphold the dignity with which she lived her life. Let’s remember who she was and what she stood for.”
Prince William has also reacted to the findings of the inquiry through a searing statement.
After thanking the lead investigator, British judge John Anthony Dyson, William deemed the Lord’s findings “extremely concerning”.
The Duke wrote: “It is welcome that the BBC accepts Lord Dyson’s findings in full – which are extremely concerning – that BBC employees: lied and used fake documents to obtain the interview with my mother; made lurid and false claims about the Royal Family which played on her fears and fuelled paranoia; displayed woeful incompetence when investigating complaints and concerns about the programme; and were evasive in their reporting to the media and covered up what they knew from their internal investigation.”
William went on to suggest that the way in which the interview came about influenced his mother’s candidness, and claimed that the revelations themselves contributed to the worsening of his parents relationship.
“It is my view that the deceitful way the interview was obtained substantially influenced what my mother said. The interview was a major contribution to making my parents’ relationship worse and has since hurt countless others.”
The ‘people’s princess’ famously sat down with Martin Bashir from the BBC’s Panorama in 1995 to talk everything from her rocky marriage, mental health battle and struggles with an eating disorder.
During the highly revealing chat, Diana confessed that she had also been unfaithful to Charles and that she had developed bulimia from the stress of trying to keep her marriage from falling apart.
Speaking about the eating disorder, the princess compared it to a “secret disease,” candidly stating, “you inflict it upon yourself because your self-esteem is at a low ebb, and you don’t think you’re worthy or valuable”.
In recent years, people close to the princess have slammed the interview – including her ex-partner and brother.
Back in January, Diana’s former partner, heart surgeon Hasnat Khan, slammed the BBC interviewer in charge of the royal’s revealing chat, Martin Bashir, for exploiting Diana’s vulnerabilities.
“One of her most attractive qualities was her vulnerability,” Khan told the Daily Mail, “it was what endeared her to the public. I later realised that Martin picked on those vulnerabilities and exploited them”.
The 62-year-old surgeon went on, “He was very persuasive with Diana. It was all about him being from the BBC, being respectable and very pious even. But he filled her head with rubbish”.
Khan’s comments came not two months after Diana’s brother, Earl Charles Spencer, claimed that his sister was “tricked” into the vulnerable situation after Bashir falsified bank statements to procure the interview.
Back in November last year, the Earl confessed he was “not at all satisfied” with the 1996 enquiry into the BBC and wanted further action to take place. As a result, a further independent investigation was launched to determine the circumstances surrounding the interview.
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